Sedona and Verde Valley Real Estate

Second Quarter 2016

Boring, year after year after year after year, for the last 7 years the number of sales for single family homes has remained at the same rate; let’s just say it, 400 sales per year. That is our market; in Sedona area we do 400 sales per year.

Single Family Transactions 2 QTR 2016

But what is really going on in the Sedona market. For the last 12 month period we saw an insignificant rise in the median sales price of single family homes of a meager .007%, for the mathematically challenged that is 7 tenths of 1 percent, hardly worth talking about.

So what is going on? The low inventory that we saw at the end of the first quarter has bounced back to about where it was a year ago and has taken a little of the pressure off the market. Inventory is still in short supply for homes below $400,000.

For all segments of the Sedona residential market there were 125 sales below $400,000 in the first 6 months of 2016 with a current inventory of 101 homes. The inventory is especially acute below $300,000 with 43 homes on the market and 77 sales in the last 6 months, that is a less than 3.5 month supply. A seller’s market there.

Not so for the market above $750,000. There were 14 sales in the range from $750,000 to $1,000,000 and just 9 sales above $1,000,000 in the first 6 months of 2016. There are 135 listings in those price ranges, still a buyer’s market, about a three years supply.

Median sales prices have been strong for the first 6 months of the year in all areas of the Verde Valley and if they continue on for the rest of 2016 we will see solid gains in pricing.

Single Family Median Sales Price First 6 mo. 2016

The median sales for single family homes in the Sedona area for the first 6 months of the year is 6.7% higher than the first 6 months of 2015. Similar gains were posted in Lake Montezuma/Rimrock at 4.7%, with significantly higher gains posted in Camp Verde and Cottonwood at 15% each.

Notice of Trustees sales remain low at pre-recession lows with foreclosed sales having a minimal impact on the market, with the majority of the Trustees sales occurring in the Prescott area where they had a lot more new home subdivisions coming online in 2004-2006

Interest rates are incredibly good right now at near record lows bouncing around 3.25 to 3.75 for fixed rate loans. This is a good reason for buyers that have been on the fence to jump off and get into the game. Lower interest rates help minimize the increase in sales prices.

Just the Facts: These statistics cover a  12 month period from July 1 to June 30 and compare the year over year prices and sales.

Sedona area:

The median price of a single family home rose just under .07% in the last 12 month period compared to the previous 12 month period coming in at $445,375. The number of transactions for the last 12 months was up 3% compared to the previous 12 month period. The median number of transactions for the last 7 years is 398, so there you go.

Vacant land transactions saw a year over year gain of 17% to 130 sales in the last 12 months. In spite of the gain in sales the median sales prices was off 13.4% to $130,000. Vacant land inventory is still at a several years supply. Vacant land sales were very soft in the first quarter of 2016 with 15 sales but rebounded in the second quarter with 40 sales making the year to date total at 55 for 2016.

The luxury market, over $1,000,000, has still not recovered from the slow fall of 2015, with only 16 sales in the last 12 month period compared to 36 in the previous 12 month period. Year to date 2016 shows 9 sales over $1,000,000 with no sales yet in 2016 over $2,000,000.  Inventory of homes listed over $1,000,000 remains steady at around 71 listings.

Agent days on the market saw a significant drop to 104 days for the last 12 months, down from 147 for the previous 12 month period. Properties that are priced right are selling quickly.

The median sales price for Condos and Townhomes in the Sedona area dropped off 9% to $240,000 in the last 12 months. The number of sales was off just a bit to 96 sales in the last 12 month period.

Camp Verde:

The median sales price for single family homes in the Camp Verde area for the last 12 months is up 8.5% for the last 12 months to $190,000 from $175,000 for the previous 12 months. The Camp Verde area saw the strongest gain in year over year sales jumping 32% to 103 sales in the last 12 months. Median sales price of single family homes in the first 6 months of 2016 was $212,000.

Lake Montezuma and Rimrock:

The median sales price for single family homes in the Rimrock and Lake Montezuma saw a solid increase in the last 12 months with a 5.7% increase over the previous 12 months to $150,200. Sales were steady with 69 sales in the last 12 months.

Cottonwood and Cornville:

The median sales price for single family homes in the Cottonwood and Cornville area rose 5.7% to $211,500 for the last 12 months up from $199,900. Number of sales rose 4% to 492 sales for the last 12 month period.

The Bottom Line: In spite of the increase in inventory in the second quarter prices for the first 6 months of the year are solid with significant increase in prices throughout the Verde Valley. Interest rates are phenomenal right now at near record lows and help offset rising prices. Sales above $750,000 remain slow and are probably impacted by uncertainty in the stock market and the contentious election cycle. Looks like more of same for the rest of 2016.

Click here for the complete: Second Quarter 2016 Sedona and Verde Valley Real Estate Statistics